Machines for loading articles singly onto a conveyor and discharging them in batches are known, see for example U.S. Pat. No. 4,768,642 which provides a plurality of conveyors to which are attached material handling devices. The material handling devices attached to one belt are permitted to operate at one speed for loading of product and to stop or operate at a different speed for unloading but use the same loading and unloading stations as the other belt.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,954,165 shows an automatic collating machine for organizing into groups a flow of articles such as ice cream sandwiches.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,018,334 there is described a conveyor in which articles are fed individually into a conveyor at a loading station and are off-loaded at an unloading station in batches. Differences in conveyor movement at the loading and unloading stations is compensated for by an accumulator. Accumulators are well known and are described, for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,142,626, U.S. Pat. No. 4,168,776 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,513,858.
Whilst many of the machines of the prior art are very suitable for certain applications some of them lack the versatility for other applications and operations.